Can You Live In Berlin Without Speaking German?
Ah that question…can you live in Berlin without speaking German? Of course, you can! There are no rules and laws that people who don’t speak German can’t enter Berlin.
Imagine having that law in Berlin.
Warschauer Straße will never be the same anymore.
No one would want to live in Berlin.
But thankfully, in my years of living in Berlin, I witness it that anyone can live in this city without mastering the German language.
Does everyone in Berlin speak English?
Based on my experience, no, not everyone in Berlin speaks English. But Berlin is like an international city with 25,000 English native speakers. There are also Germans who speak and understand basic English though.
While there are some areas that majority of residents are very German, they may know how to speak English but they prefer to speak German and they expect you to speak the language ’cause ‘you’re in Germany’.
Let’s just say, those people have that ‘N’ mentality. Even native Germans told me that. So I didn’t make that up.
Can you get by with just English in Berlin?
If you’re planning to work or study in Berlin, it may difficult to just speak English especially if your job deals with the natives like working as a nurse.
In fact, to work as a nurse, B1 and B2 certificates are one of the requirements to get a job in Berlin or in Germany in general.
But if you’re in IT group, you wouldn’t need to prove that you can speak German in a native level or even in conversational level.
The important thing is you know how to be polite and grateful using basic German skills like saying ‘Guten Tag, ‘Danke’ and ‘Bitte schön.’ Those are very basic and you don’t have to go to a language school to learn and utter those words.
If you plan to travel to Berlin for a short time, basic conversational German words would suffice. Here is a blog post that will help you as a traveler.
Can you find work without speaking German in Berlin?
Like I mentioned above, if you used to work in IT area or technology branches in your home country, you have also a big opportunity waiting in Berlin.
I may not know people personally but I encountered some who can’t speak German in a conversational and professional way but they’re working as IT experts.
I also happened to meet a fellow countryman in our embassy who works in Berlin, for an international company and she doesn’t speak German too.
Aside from working for a company as an IT expert, there are also companies like delivery service companies which riders and some staff are also foreigners who don’t speak German.
Here are some websites where you can find English-speaking jobs:
- arbeitnow
- BerlinStartUpJobs
- EnglishJobsGermany
- Nomaden Berlin Job Board
- IamExpat
- Faruse
- English speaking people looking for a job – Berlin
What language do people speak in Berlin aside from German and English?
When I first arrived in Berlin, I doubted my German speaking and comprehension skills with how the Berliners speak to each other and to me.
Berliners have their own dialect called ‘Berlinerisch’ or ‘Berliner Schnauze’.
Here are some common Berliner words you might encounter living in Berlin:
- icke, ick – ich
- jut – gut
- tschü – tschüss
- wat – was
- loofen – laufen
- kiek mal- guck mal
- allet – alles
Can You Live In Berlin Without Speaking German? The Challenges You May Encounter.
While you can live in Berlin without speaking German, it doesn’t mean that you can fully enjoy it.
If you really want to integrate well in Berlin city, speaking the language is one of the best ways to do it wherein you can speak with locals and know more about them.
If you’re planning to date or have a relationship with a native German, language could be a barrier in your relationship if she can only speak basic English.
I’m not saying this to disappoint you in going to Berlin, but expect some frustrations from the locals when you approach them in English.
Germans are ready to help but it’s frustrating when they don’t know how to facilitate help in another language.
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